The Knott's Berry Farm (KBF) Discussion Thread

[SoCalJasonland]

Wednesday's visit to Knott's was nice. Despite having quite a few busses in the east lot and north dirt lot, the park was relatively dead. Ghostrider and Xcelerator got up to a two train wait at times and log ride had a 10 min wait, but no waits for anything else.

 

There are some cats living in the Ghostrider line on the opposite side of the line from the Pan for Gold attraction. I finally asked why the pan for gold smells good sometimes as they have something heating on a little stove. He said that was chlorine from the water baking off when they dried the sand on the stove. I feel stupid now. Finally, got some pictures of Calico River rapids ride.

Cats living in the Ghostrider line near the Pan for Gold

Calico River - entrance

Calico River - shack

Calico River - log

Calico River - bear with salmon

Calico River - men moving logs

Calico River - 2 men and a puma

Calico River - 2 men and a puma

Calico River - water explosion area

Calico River - drenching stations

[Canobie Coaster]

^ Doesn't Disneyland have a bunch of ferrule cats that kill Mickey's distant relatives? Maybe Knott's is doing the same?

[Nrthwnd]

^ Yep. We also found cats in Tokyo DisneySea on our last visit there. They've possibly been there in Knott's for a long time, but nobody posted photos of them. Till ^^ he did.

Here kitty, kitty. DisneySea 2013.

[Canobie Coaster]

My favorite is still the cat I saw "operating" the flyers at Fun Spot Kissimmee.

[SoCalJasonland]

^ Doesn't Disneyland have a bunch of ferrule cats that kill Mickey's distant relatives? Maybe Knott's is doing the same?

 

It may have started out like that but most places find that cats prefer to kill all of the birds vs. mice/rats. I read the other day that Australia is going to kill a few million feral cats because they are extincting everything but the mice and rats.

[Jaykethekid]

Wow, thanks for all the info. Since so many of you replied, this post might turn into a wall of text *sorry*

Not so much at knotts but just down the street is Adventure City which is home of a pretty unique Gerstlauer shuttle coaster. If you're spending 3 days at knott's then i'm sure you're not going to miss anything lol.

Adventure City is definitely on my radar. I will for sure try and squeeze it in!

 

Three days is PLENTY of time for Knott's. Many of the coasters (GhostRider, Xcelerator, HangTime) have atrocious throughput, so this will give you plenty of time to experience and re-ride all of the coasters.

 

Aside from the obvious ones like the major coasters, the two can't-miss attractions in the park are the Timber Mountain Log Ride and the Calico Mine Ride. Both are very historic rides in the park that are living their best lives after their respective refurbishments a few years ago.

 

As for food, my personal favorite is the new BBQ place near Sky Cabin. I have tried all of the entrees and sides and like them all. The grill near Calico River Rapids (I forget its name!) also has excellent burgers and chicken sandwiches. Yeah, typical theme park food, but these burgers are different - at least in my opinion.

 

I'm not very big on shows. The Charles M Schulz theater always has shows going on, but I rarely watch them so maybe someone else can chime in for this one.

 

A few additional random tips:

1) Try to do GhostRider in both the front and back. I like them both equally, and they're both great. The back is better in the first half, and the front is better in the second half. There is a single rider line, but it isn't open all the time. There is a sign in the outside portion of the queue that states if it's open or not. It can save you tons of time.

2) The front seat is my favorite seat on Xcelerator, but keep in mind that the front car has its own line that splits at the bottom of the ramp, so it is often full and moves very slowly. Back seat is also fantastic, but the front seat on that launch is incredible.

3) Montezooma's Revenge in the back seat. That's all. There's nothing else like it in the country.

4) Get to the park at opening on at least one of your days and head straight to GhostRider. Then head to the back of the park for Xcelerator and HangTime (the Boardwalk is empty the first hour or two of operations), then do the rest in any order you'd like. The park isn't very big and it is very easy to navigate and walk from one end to the other.

 

EDIT: Also, don't forget to check the scheduled ride closures on the park website. GhostRider is closed Mon-Fri every week in May, in addition to a few others scattered throughout.

Thanks for the tips! I personally feel it will be just the right amount of time to really soak in the whole park since 2 out of the 3 days im there will be the weekend of the 18th. So combine the weekend crowds with the reopening of the rapids, i assume it will be quite busy. Thankfully I'll have fastlane on Saturday! Also thanks for pointing out that the website lists the ride closures. I was aware Ghostrider was closed during the week, but it doesnt look like anything else will be closed when im there thankfully!

 

I REALLY love Knott's but 3 days? You know Disneyland is like 10 minutes away right?

It's just a personal thing, but i like to spend more time than needed at parks for my first visit. I dont get to travel often, so i want to be sure to really soak in the park and get plenty of rides on my favorite attractions. Chances are I likely wont be back to Knott's anytime soon.

^ I was gonna suggest that or even SFMM but I didn't what what his budget looked like. I've never stayed at Knott's a full day and I felt I got the full experience, personally lol.

If you're going all the way from Kansas to California and you're not going to Disneyland, you're doing it wrong.

 

Knott's is a lot of fun though. Ghost Town is great, lots of fun shops. The cave in Camp Snoopy is cool. Don't miss any opportunity for boysenberry anything, especially the pie.

One day at Knott’s, two at Disneyland. You won’t regret spending the extra cash.

The reason I am not going to Disney while im in the area is to keep the total cost of this trip extremely low. I have a platinum pass through Worlds of fun and a Six Flags Membership through Frontier City, so all that we're paying for on this trip is food, travel, and hotels. SFMM is the other park ill visit on this trip and i have planned multiple days there too (we plan on possibly squeezing in Santa Monica Pier one evening too). Both Knotts and SFMM were parks that sparked my interest in coasters when i was a kid, so thats why they are the focus of this trip (outside of touristy stuff in LA). I personally dont have any interest in (or a budget for) Disney Parks. They're not my type of parks. I am a theming guy, and i know Disney has world class theming, but the cost and crowds kinda push me away from those parks.

 

But thanks for all the tips about knotts! They're all really helpful!

[jarmor]

Yeah budget wise, Disney isn't just a place you just GO to. It's generally a once in a few years thing for some. If you have the time I would also check out Belmont park in San Diego. Free to park, free to enter just pay per ride. It has one of the classic big dipper coasters. Roughly an hour and a half from knotts.

[coasterbill]

I'm not here to tell anyone what to do on their vacation and I know that money is an issue but if instead of spending $85 on Fastlane even though you have 3 full days at Knott's and $20 to ride a kiddy coaster at Adventure City you could not do either of those things and for 24 bucks more than you would have spent on those things you could spend a day at Disneyland.

 

... 24 bucks

 

If you add the park hopper and Maxpass it's a difference of $104 which isn't insignificant but it kind of is when you're in a place you never get to go on a long vacation. Don't discount their coasters either, I'd probably rather ride Disneyland's Space Mountain than any coaster at Knott's. That ride is batshit crazy.

 

It's up to you, but I'm speaking as someone that did an LA trip about 5 years ago with the same mentality that you have now ("We're on a budget", "We're not Disney people" and "We like thrilling coasters better anyway") and then we went back a few months ago and finally spent a day at Disneyland and realized what a ridiculous mistake we made.

[Canobie Coaster]

If you're a theming guy, Disney is a must. Yes they're more expensive than other parks, but I was able to fit them in while I was in college by cutting out in all other areas (hotel, food, etc). You also get what you pay for with Disney.

[ryder]

If you are spending all that time at Knotts, also make sure you head over across the street to see Indenpendance Hall. It's a nice, quite respite that is very often overlooked.

 

If you really want to explore the park, there is so much history here. Parts of this park have been around for nearly 100 years... many of the building in Ghost Town are actually authentic, moved from real ghost towns.

 

Aside from the obviously, try to catch the small things: a melodrama at the Bird Cage Theater (if running), visit the Schoolhouse, see (and hear) Catawumpus, feel the heartbeating grave at Boot Hill, listen to the "Private Club" across from the bumper cars (Wheeler Dealer), talk to Sad Eye Joe, catch the ghost in the coffin near the Bird Cage theater, view all the peek-ins around Ghost Town, catch the Wild West Stunt Show, and view the MIssion dioramas. For Ghostrider, if you go first thing in the morning, there are local feral cats that get fed by the nearby Pan for Gold every morning... look for them! And also listen for the sounds of mining as you enter the tunnel for Ghostrider, as well as in a pit near Boot Hill. And if you look up around Ghost Town, you may see some rocking chairs rocking all by themselves...

 

Mystery Lodge is a lovely show, very underrated. And the Stagecoach is unique, but it can get long (and very slow moving) lines, so try to hit it on the early side. You may encounter some robbers on the train. The Hat Dance is a great, speedy tea cup ride that can really fly. If you're a Snoopy fanatic, there are at least two "hidden" Snoopys: one in the ironwork fence around the large fountain across from Iron Reek, and one in the Iron Reef loading area mural/steelwork. Good luck finding them.

 

And go to the Chicken Dinner restaurant in the Marketplace (outside the park)... they have been serving the same recipes since the place got 4 hour lines in the 1930's. There's a reason it's popular. And eat as much Boysenberry as possible (the Boysenberry punch, served at most food locations in the park, is not to be missed)--it's the local crop that originated right on that very land. Also in the Marketplace, in some "hidden" doors in gift shop (they are marked "This is not an Exit"), is a lovely atrium and nook that is recreated to look like George Washington's fireplace (and all important bathrooms, lol).

[Nrthwnd]

^ Speaking of the atrium and bathrooms in Marketplace....

Sept.12, 2016.

Same day. Another nice quiet spot.

[alpengeistdude321]

I went to Knotts on Monday and I was pleasantly surprised to see Ghostrider running. The website said it was scheduled to be closed on weekdays in May before Memorial Day. I was expecting not to get any rides on it and I was very disappointed since I made a road trip from Santa Cruz to get to Knotts before the summer crowds hit (my first visit in a few years). When I arrived to the parking lot, I saw Ghostrider testing which got me hopeful. Then I was elated that as I walked in the entrance, the queue line was open! There was a two train wait max for it all day which was incredible. Got four amazing rides on it; three rides in the back, one in the front.

 

Does anyone have insider info why Ghostrider was scheduled to be closed but now Knotts is letting it run? Will they end up closing it next week and/or the week after?

[ytterbiumanalyst]

Don't discount their coasters either, I'd probably rather ride Disneyland's Space Mountain than any coaster at Knott's. That ride is batshit crazy.

Agreed, and I say that as one who very much likes most of Knott's coasters. I think you and I are the only ones who actually like Pony Express. Space Mountain is the shiznit.

[coasterbill]

^^ That happened to us with Orange Streak at Mall of America. It was right in the middle of a refurb and it opened anyway. Don’t question it, just enjoy it.

 

That said, my only theory is that maintenance showed up to work on Ghostrider but one of them saw someone that kind of looked like me on their way in to the park. In a panic they immediately left Ghostrider and took Timber Mountain Log Ride down for refurb for the day instead since they hate me and they’re determined to make sure that I never ride it.

[Canobie Coaster]

Don't discount their coasters either, I'd probably rather ride Disneyland's Space Mountain than any coaster at Knott's. That ride is batshit crazy.

Agreed, and I say that as one who very much likes most of Knott's coasters. I think you and I are the only ones who actually like Pony Express. Space Mountain is the shiznit.

 

I enjoy Pony Express, but it's always closed or it breaks down when I'm in line.

[coasterbill]

Pony Express tried to kill me last time I was there but I still love it.

 

We were walking next to it and someone’s retainer (in a case so it was clearly not in use) and cell phone flew off and exploded on the midway a few feet from me. It was hilarious watching this employee frantically run over asking if I was hurt. I had to assure her over and over that it didn’t even hit me. At one point I just wanted to be like “Look, I’m not from California. I’m not going to sue you”.

 

More than anything I was just impressed that a loose article could be flying that fast after being ejected from f*cking Pony Express.

[Canobie Coaster]

Pony Express didn't try to kill you; the person with the unsecured loose articles did.

[coasterbill]

True, I shouldn’t have blamed the ponies.

[defrocker]

My wife has prescription sunglasses and without them she can't see crap. In order to ride with them she has to have straps on them at most parks nowadays. The thing is, she hates nerd straps so she "hides" them by tying them into her pony tail. She always explains to the ride attendants if necessary and it's never been a problem. However, on Pony Express we dispatched and rolled out into the Giddy-Up area and the ride op announced over the speakers that he will not launch the train until the girl in the pink shirt takes off her sunglasses and secures them. So while sitting there on the train she has to take down her pony tail, take off her secured sunglasses, and give them to me so I can put them into a pocket... She was so mad/embarrassed.

 

Apparently Pony Express don't play.

[ytterbiumanalyst]

^ She's got a right to be mad. That shouldn't have happened. They could have seen her sunglasses prior to dispatch.

 

Pony Express tried to kill me last time I was there but I still love it.

 

We were walking next to it and someone’s retainer (in a case so it was clearly not in use) and cell phone flew off and exploded on the midway a few feet from me. It was hilarious watching this employee frantically run over asking if I was hurt. I had to assure her over and over that it didn’t even hit me. At one point I just wanted to be like “Look, I’m not from California. I’m not going to sue you”.

 

More than anything I was just impressed that a loose article could be flying that fast after being ejected from f*cking Pony Express.

That is hilarious. You should have actually said that. I would have loved to see her reaction.

[Nrthwnd]

Pony Express is a sweet, sweet ride.

[SoCalJasonland]

Since I had to work in Orange Couty twice this week, I went back to the park on Friday. It was drizzling with a lot of school kids for some festival of music, so I didn't last long.

 

First off, I got to commend a disabled person for having the guts to tie up a beagle and take him through Snoopy's home park. Then, for once, a disabled person thought I was crazy and didn't know what I was talking about. Perhaps it was the beagle's choice and led him here. I don't know.

 

Many of you have seen the fake rooster in front of Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner. The real rooster is smart and hangs out at the gift shop.

Why did the rooster hide at the gift shop? Because the chicken restaurant was around the corner.

One puma, and zero men. Please call security.

Service Snoopy

Cartoon Snoopy

Other famous beagles at Knott's - https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/27/sports/othersports/27beagle.html

Edited May 11, 2019 by SoCalJasonland

[Nrthwnd]

Love the rooster! Will look out for it/him? on our next visit, in early September.

[Shut It Down]

Let me preface this post by saying I am a HUGE Knott’s fan. I am a frequent attendee and will be for life. But I have never been to Soak City..... until today. So after 20 years how did it go???? I have to say it sucked!!! This has to be the worst big chain water park in the world. Absolutely terrible. It’s nothing but a concrete jungle with no charm, no rides, and no fun. Somebody please defend this place because me and my girl thought it was garbage!!! The only reason I’m not giving it an F is because of the most recent addition of Shore Break, which was fun. But replacing a proslide tornado with The Wedge was a massive mistake. I’ve ridden two tornados and they’re amazing. The wedge was very short and very disappointing. I hope I’m not coming off too harsh, but I was very shocked at this park.

[jarmor]

I hope I’m not coming off too harsh. . .

You are.